BEAUFORT, S.C. - A state lawmaker says a bill to close Port Royal and allow for the development of the 22 waterfront acres could be approved by the General Assembly next year.

Sen. Scott Richardson, R-Hilton Head Island, said a bill being drafted by Rep. Catherine Ceips, R-Beaufort, to close the port should be quickly approved by lawmakers when they return to Columbia in January.

"I'm fairly positive we can get it done this legislative session," Richardson said Monday.

But Port Royal officials say Richardson may be too optimistic.

"It's not something that's going to happen overnight," Port Royal Mayor Samuel Murray said of the port's closing. "After the last communication I had with the (state Ports Authority) they were looking at (closing the port) but they're also looking at the long-term contracts they have to deal with."

The Ports Authority has contracts with six private businesses that use the port property.

Richardson has been pushing to close the port for about two years. The initiative gained steam in July when Gov. Mark Sanford suggested that closing the ailing port, which lost $58,000 last year, would save the state money.

Richardson said state officials are negotiating the final terms of closing the port, which includes giving state officials emergency access to the area. He said he doesn't expect the port's closing to be held up past next year. "I've been assured by the Ports Authority that they're ready to let it go," he said.

Meanwhile, the Port Royal Town Council is working on creating a new zoning district for the waterfront property. Last week, the council gave initial approval to zoning that sets design standards, building size and buffer zones for the port property and creates a panel that would review development plans.